If it were me, I'd go with fig trees. But then that's just me ;)

I no not a fig tree in front. They get way to big and look really bad later on if you can't take care of them right.

I like your yaupons, The only one I would get rid of is the one right by the front door, putting in something that flowers nicely. A rose bush maybe?

your place -it's lovely-looks a bit formal, are you wanting to go with the same level of formality??

i love those little round boxwoods (?)

I agree with OK, your place is beautiful. In the picture I see what appears to be a Crepe peeking over the roof. I do not know the name but there are some Crepe's out there that only get 10 to 12 feet tall and the blooms are extended over many weeks. Just a thought.

I'm not planning on changing the plants in the front yard tears, so whatever I do up around the house needs to blend with it, but it doesn't necessarily have to be as formal. Everyone seems to be mentioning taller things like trees. Do you not think it would look right with something shorter? Instead of a crepe myrtle tree, I wondered about a weeping crepe myrtle. It's hard to tell from the other pictures, but I added a Knock Out rose and some flowers in the middle tear last year. I don't know if that makes it a little less formal or not. I eventually want to put more flowers around the Knock Outs.

Laurie

{{gwi:506468}}

The spot to the right of the door is screaming for a camelia. Slow growing, sasanquas have beautiful evergreen leaves, blooms in late fall, not messy, low maintenance and come in many colors and mature sizes.
Another non blooming evergreen is cleyera. Dark green, glossy leaves, reddish new growth. Also slow growing.
I like keeping evergreens near the front door - and putting deciduous on the corners. Dwarf crape myrtle on the west side maybe, oak leaf hydrangea on the east. Personally I don't think you need to match your corners with the same selection. BTW you have a lovely yard.
Debi

How about putting elephant ears w/ caladiums next to the door? They will give you a different shape and texture, which will bring interest to your front door. You could add vinca there too to be a ground cover in the winter, or you could do seasonal colors in the winter like pansies or tulips. (Check out texastulips dot com for varieties that can stay in the ground year round.)

I think the ones at the far corners of the house look great, maybe just start by removing the two closest to the front door. Im thinking something vertical and evergreen like junipers-or maybe (f you are facing the house)the juniper on the left, and a lorepetlam - there is a green or a purple variety, i have both and they are blooming a beatiful hot pink right now. i would only recommend hydrageas if you have a spot that gets only morning sun, or full shade as I have been growing them in dallas and mine look best in full shade, and they need a LOT of water, so just keep that in mind. but with that in mind they are my favorite plant. also adding something purple in contrast with what you have already established would be a pretty contrast, maybe a vitex/chaste tree, they are great, and under used and grow quickly only downside is it is decidous.

What area of TX are you located?

natvtxn - I live near Ft. Worth

debi - I can't believe I never thought of a Camelia. Do you have any experience in growing them? I was just wondering if they're all about the same height or if they vary? Is there any particular one you would recommend?

I'm unfamiliar with some of the other plants mentioned so I'm going to look them up. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

Laurie

If you can grow camelias and azeleas, you might want to try dwarf gardenias.
Also if you want it to look a bit less formal, plant iris and daylilys.

Maybe a redbud by the garage? You could put some beauty berry in there to keep your deep rose colors going. I think some weeping shapes would look good added in.

msrose - I have 2 Yuletide camelias - that I absolutely love. One grows in a large container and gets more sun and it is my best bloomer. The other in the gound and more shade still blooms well but not spectacularly. There are other colors. Mature height is said to be 8-10 feet, but they grow so slowly that if I have to prune every 2-3 years, that'll be OK. I have a neighbor who has one that's about 6-7 feet tall. There are different cultivars with different colors and heights - but can't vouch for their reliability as I've only done the yuletide. It's an awfully showy plant and would really look nice by the front door. There are sasanquas and japonicas, and the yuletide is a sasanqua.

I would have to think really long about what to suggest near your front door.

But for replacing that shrub on the...(?) is it the west corner ((?)you said front faces north) - anyway, the one in the background to the streetward bend in your driveway - I think you would very much enjoy a lorapetalum.

VERY nicely arranged (& maintained) terraced front yard!

natvtxn - Are gardenias sun plants or shade plants? I would love to be able to walk out my front door and smell gardenias. I bought a dwarf gardenia two different times and planted it in my back yard (in the sun) and it died both times, so I didn't know if the dwarf variety was more difficult to grow.

I have lots of daylilies in the back yard and I'm always looking for more places to plant them. I couldn't plant them near the front door because I don't think it would get enough sun. How would it look it I planted them on the corners of the house? The only problem is that area would be bare during the winter.

stitches216 & kriscojo - I've always loved the purple/red lorapetalums, but would I have to prune it to keep it from getting too big? I'm trying to find things that don't have to be pruned.

Laurie

You definitely do have an overabundance of yaupons - regular size and dwarf. I think the exception is the short row of what looks like burford hollies on the right front of the house. All those yaupons means repetition of the same texture over and over all over the place. I think you should consider removing a few of the dwarf yaupons also and replacing them with different textured plants. Maybe a grouping of dwarf abelias or India hawthornes if you want to keep the evergreen shrubs, but these will also provide flowers. I know those are simple suggestions, but they would provide a varied texture to all those small leafed yaupon hollies. Lorepetalum would also be pretty if placed in a spot that didn't block a door or window and was left to grow to its natural size and shape. It would make a nice backdrop to some of those dwarf yaupons over on the side of the house - a different color and texture of leaf and pink flowers in the early spring. Something else that would be nice if you are removing the large yaupons is a vitex. It would look nice at one of the corners of the house, especially if you plant it out a bit diagonally from the corner which would visually extend the house on either side. Prune them up from the bottom like you would do to a crape myrtle - make it grow as a small ornamental tree. Their lavender flowers in the summer are very pretty. It might even be nice to put it in the place of that large yaupon that is at the left of the front door since if you grew it like a small tree, it will have that open branching structure on the bottom two-thirds and open that area up as you look towards the front door - it won't block the view of the door as much as that yaupon is doing right now. Your front door should be the focal point of the house, so you don't want to block it with a bunch of green.

Are those Knockout roses you have ready to go in the ground? If so, excellent choice. Whatever they are, that color will look really good against the light brick of your home.

I have 3 gardenias. The one in full sun does not do as well as the others. One is only a few feet away, but is under the rose bower. The third one gets a lot of shade and does not bloom as much.
I guess the answer is they will need afternoon shade.

{{gwi:1335943}}

Lorapetalum as I know it will eventually require some pruning. We have one in a weird spot, sun- and soil-wise. I have only pruned it lightly once or twice in 3 years. (We bought it very small, it has grown slowly, and is just beginning to test the limits of the space we have budgeted for it). But depending on its location in sun and soil, lorapetalum can grow very fast and become larger than the yaupon you have now (in overall bulk that is, but maybe not quite as tall). There might be a dwarf type that limits itself to a maximum size that would work for you.

Other shrubs that might not get as big as lorapetalum and not require as much pruining - again for that one corner where the driveway curves - are Indian hawthorn and abelia. I think denisew mentioned abelia earlier. The hawthorn can have disease problems, in our experience, but the healthy specimens are very nice evergreens.

denise - Yes, those are KnockOuts. I planted them last year and I couldn't be happier with them. They stayed covered in blooms.

Laurie